Policy learning and smart specialization: balancing policy change and continuity for new regional industrial paths

This article seeks to explain what policy approaches and policy measures are best suited for promoting new regional industrial path development and what needs and possibilities there are for such policy to change and adapt to new conditions in order to remain efficient. The article departs from the notion of Smart Specialization and discusses how regional strategies that are inspired by this approach influence path renewal and new path creation and how they are related to and aligned with policy strategies implemented at other scales (local, regional, national, supranational). Our main argument is that new regional industrial growth paths require both continuity and change within the support structure of the innovation system. Unless smart specialization strategies are able to combine such adaptation and continuity, they fail to promote path renewal and new path creation. Our arguments are illustrated with empirical findings from the regional innovation system of Scania, South Sweden.